


A Different Kind of Mission

by BeautifulIllusion



Series: Step by Step [1]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: F/M, comradeship, drabblet
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-06
Updated: 2015-01-06
Packaged: 2018-03-06 09:39:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,550
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3129872
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BeautifulIllusion/pseuds/BeautifulIllusion
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An unexpected encounter with his top apprentice leads Levi to re-evaluate his perception of her.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Different Kind of Mission

**Author's Note:**

> This was written a while back in 2013, my contribution to the very first rivamika week in tumblr. At that time, there were less details revealed for the characters (and Levi's spinoff A Choice with No Regrets was not published yet). So everything written here solely based on my interpretation of the manga mixed with my own imagination, and there maybe inconsistency to the current storyline.

The sun reaches its zenith by the time Levi makes his stroll into the main promenade.

He is on his way back to return to the compound after attending a quarterly joined meeting with officers from other divisions of the military. There were just way too many craps and political shits being discussed, wasting hours that could’ve been used for something exponentially better, like exterminating titans. By the second day, he had a throbbing headache, and his head was about to explode. If he had to stay longer, he might end up strangling someone to death. Luckily, he was allowed to leave on the third day while Erwin and Hange had to stay to attend other meetings.

All of a sudden, a familiar red fabric billowing in the air appears out of the corner of his eye, and he automatically jerks his head to the side, following the direction of its movement. Recognition strikes him at once when he catches a glimpse of the Wings of Freedom insignia.

Is that Mikasa Ackerman? What the hell is she doing outside the compound? As far as he can recall, there is no recess or outing scheduled for this week. So the brat must be out here without a permission.

Before he even realizes it, his leg has swung to the left, and he finds himself tailing after the tall figure, trotting back toward the town center. Maintaining a safe distance, he pulls down at the rim of his hat and contemplates on how to best confront the girl.

Just when he thinks he can finally relax after two grueling days at the meeting, now this—he caught one of his soldiers sneaking out of the compound and loitering in the town.

Mentally exhausted from having been cooped up in a room with the royal dogs he has rather not associate with, he is not in the mood to deal with a delinquent brat, but it doesn’t look like he has other choice.

Ackerman is a member of his squad, so naturally the responsibility to bring her back in one piece lies in his hands.

He just hopes she would cooperate and not create any more trouble. If not, he would just have to bind and gag her and haul her like a burlap sack back to the compound. Considering her bullheaded way and her propensity to defy her superior, that might very well what he has to do.

His eyes scan his surroundings, and he notes the mocking and hostile glances that trail her at once. The brat doesn’t even notice how her Scouting Legion’s uniform makes her become the center of attention. As opposed to him in his plain clothes, she sticks out like a sore thumb in a sea of civilians, who obviously are not too fond of the legion’s existence.

Where is she heading anyway?

A loud crash halts him in his track.

"Hey! Watch it, fuckhead!"

Mikasa had just rammed into a burly man, subsequently knocking the bottle the man was holding out of his hand. The bottle shattered onto the ground, the liquid spilling over the dirt patch and staining it in dark burgundy. The burly man is clearly fuming in rage, but Mikasa doesn’t seem to give a damn, her stoic face in place.

An amused smirk graces his lips as Levi observes the scene in silence, peering from below his hat. This ought to be good. He moves a bit closer, so he can be within earshot but not too close for his subordinate to notice his presence.

“What are you going to do about it, huh, bitch?” the man taunts, stomping toward Mikasa.

"It was an accident," Mikasa replies calmly, as though she was exchanging a customary greeting. "I’m sorry." She turns away from the man and immediately resumes her step.

Swiftly, the man grabs Mikasa's shoulder and whirls her around to face him. “You piece of shit. Do you think you can just get away like that? Is that what they teach you in the legion? That bottle you just broke costs a whole fucking month of salary.” The man sniggers. “But of course you don't give a fuck about that, do you? Squandering our tax money to fund your useless expeditions is what you shit heads do best.”

Mikasa doesn’t appear fazed. She shrugs off free out of the man’s grasp. “The only regret I have for joining the legion is that I have to sacrifice my life for a piece of worthless trash like you, who can do nothing but grumble in drunken delusion. You are an abomination to humanity,” she says, her voice low, dripping with hatred and disgust. Then without sparing another glance, Mikasa starts walking away.

"You fucking bitch." The man, visibly shaking with rage, yells a string of expletives and charges at Mikasa, his fist flying toward the back of her head at full speed. With a graceful movement, Mikasa hunches forward to dodge the man’s punch and spins around on her foot to land a blow right onto the man’s gut. The impact sends the man hurling backward, his huge bulky frame slumping to the ground with a loud thud. The man lets out a stream of muffled groan of pain as he shrivels in a fetal position, clutching at his stomach, while Mikasa just watches with an indifferent expression on her face.

Soon, when curious spectators begin to assemble in a circle around Mikasa and the man, Levi decides he has seen enough and strides briskly, pushing his way through the gathering crowds.

"Mikasa—"

The dark haired girl whips her head up to him, and if she’s surprised to see him, she doesn’t show it well. Her dark eyes are as dull as ever.

"Captain..."

He glances from side-to-side. The quicker they can move away from the crowd, which continues to grow in size, the better.

Without another word, he seizes her by the wrist firmly, and then, ignoring her furious yelp of protest and turning blind eye on the people around them, he drags her out of there. Despite her attempt to wiggle free, he doesn’t loosen his hold on her and pulls her along with him as he slips into one of the narrow alleys. He keeps his hand clamp tightly around her wrist and continues to tug her along in the remote corridor.

A short while later, he stops and whirls around, releasing his grip on her. His abrupt movement causes her to nearly collide onto him.

Steadying herself, she takes a few small steps back and glares at him, her onyx orbs flashing with indignation.

He clenches his jaw. The nerve of the brat. She has no right to be angry when she is the one breaking the rule and causing a disturbance in the middle of the town. There will be hell to pay. He will make her scrub off every speck of dirt and grime and polish every inch of wooden surface in the whole castle for months to come.

"I’m waiting, Mikasa." He crosses his arms in front of his chest, his eyes demanding an explanation from her. "And you’d better have a damn good reason for being here."

Her gaze lowers, but the aura that emanates from her is far from remorse.

"I need to get away from him," she murmurs through gritted teeth, her hand massaging her wrist.

"From _him_?" An ironic chuckle bursts out of his mouth.

Oh, Levi knows who is _him_ all right. How fucking ridiculous can this get? He's not surprised at all though. Not Really. He knows the girl’s unhealthy obsession with the titan boy, who supposedly is her adopted brother.

 _Brother?_ What a joke.

"And your lover’s spat with _him_ gave you the permission to leave the compound and wreak havoc in the middle of the town?”

Her eyes dart to him, a snarl of anger curling at her lips, her nose flaring, but in the end she only utters in a resigned tone, “No.”

He honestly doesn’t know her at all. Mikasa Ackerman isn’t like anybody he has ever worked with. She intrigues him, but at the same time, there is a part of him that feels apprehensive to come too close to her, and he's not even sure why. Could it be that he's worried to find a reflection of his younger himself in her?

Damn four-eyes for planting the ridiculous notion in his head. Now even Erwin has bought into the idea that he and Mikasa Ackerman are two of a kind. He and Mikasa are alike? Are they fucking kidding him?

His eyes scrutinize her face, and he finds her vacant stare looking back at him, a familiar gaze he finds in his own mirror every morning. He heaves an ironic sigh. Perhaps he and Mikasa do share a few common traits.

“Did you say something, sir?”

“What?” He flinches away, having been caught off guard by the question. Realizing his slip, he quickly masks his discomposure. “Is this your first time sneaking out? Or you’ve done this more than once in the past without being caught?”

“No, sir, I’ve never done this.”

“And you think it’s fine to do it today? What made you do it this time? I’m sure this wasn’t the only time you were upset with _him_.”

She sinks into silence, staring at him blankly.

“Mikasa?” he presses.

“I don’t know,” she snaps back, a hint of frustration creasing her brows. “And it’s not like it's any of your damn business.” She pauses, letting out a loud exasperated sigh. “Sir.” The last word came out in a drawl, as though she had to force it out of her mouth.

His mouth hangs ajar. He can’t tell whether he should be angry or amused by her disrespectful attitude.

Till this day, he still doesn’t understand why she has harbored ill feeling and deep-seated animosity toward him. He knows it had flourished from that time when he had to put on a cruel act before the military court, beating the shit out of her brother. But that was months ago, and she should know by now he had done that to save her beloved brother’s sorry ass. Yet her scowl persists, and every so often, he still caught her casting a look as though she wanted to bite his head off—exactly like the look she casts him right now.

Levi normally doesn’t give a rat’s ass about what others think of him, but Mikasa somehow managed to slither under his skin and stubbornly rattle his mind. It is fine if she hates him, but her constant display of defiance grates on his nerves. It feels like a blatant challenge to him, questioning his authority and competency, and that kind of sentiment never bodes well with him.

"Don’t think that I’ll let your offense fly, brat."

"I know you won’t, sir. I wouldn’t dream of it," she replies in a quiet voice, her fingers tugging at the edge of her scarf, lifting the red fabric up to her chin. Her gaze remains fastened on him for a few moments before she turns her head sideways.

He has to give it to her—she has guts. Mikasa didn’t even bat an eye at his threat while her rookie colleagues would've wet their pants off. The girl is fearless.

Only then he realizes that this is the first time for him to be stuck with her without training materials or official work matters to discuss.

Although he has mentored Mikasa for several months now, he has kept their relationship strictly professional. Their interactions have been confined to training fields, meeting rooms and some occasional office hours, and their conversations are usually brief and terse without any mention of personal matters. Aside from those, he has not bothered to put on an effort to approach her.

Steering his focus back to her, Levi runs his eyes over her profile. Gleaming lush strands of exotic black hair cascading from the crown of her head down to her jawline veils her features, imparting an air of mystery. And mystery is Mikasa Ackerman.

Beside her brother and the Arlert boy, Mikasa doesn’t seem to trust anyone else, erecting a protective wall around herself. He admits that he himself is not a socially adept person. Growing up in a sordid underground environment, he never experienced the warmth of love and affection and had thus become a jaded recluse, not trusting anyone. On the other hand, Mikasa seems to have been bestowed everything at one point, loving parents and warm home, before having them all snatched away from her in the cruelest possible way.

The gruesome events that occurred during her adolescence must have turned her into a cynic. Witnessing your own parents being slain in front of you is not exactly a happy experience for a child at such a delicate age. The incident combined with the string of violence that followed afterward must have traumatized her greatly, possibly scarring her young innocent soul permanently.

He can’t imagine how it feels like to lose his parents, for he himself was never with one—he was an orphan. In the beginning, he wasn’t exactly an easy ‘kid’ to deal with, as Hange, Erwin and others told him. They referred to him as the kid without a soul, an empty shell. But it all changed gradually when Erwin, Hange, and several others welcomed him with open arms, putting their trusts in him. Instead of using harsh methods of disciplining him, they reached out to him by offering their friendships—well at least in Hange's case, Erwin's was a bit different—and that had somehow worked.

If they managed to resurrect his dead soul, aspiring him to become a better person with a new purpose, perhaps he could mend Mikasa's tattered soul somehow. It seems like a daunting task, and he doesn’t even know if it’s even possible—but he’ll never know until he tries.

He throws an assessing glance at her and steels his resolve.

Since they are already out here, he might as well take advantage of the situation, and commences his new mission—a mission that for once doesn’t involve titans. Besides, with Erwin and Hange gone, he doesn’t really have a lot of things to do at the compound anyway, other than baby sitting a bunch of rowdy brats and reviewing documents. He can spare a couple hours.

With that last thought, he turns swiftly to face the entrance of the alley and begins to move. “Come,” he commands.

When he hears nothing, not even a shuffle of boots on the dirt, he swivels his head over his shoulder and meets her harsh glare.

He snickers. “For crying out loud, Mikasa, quit being a fucking cranky brat. I don’t have all day. It’s lunch time, and I’m starving.”

The expression on her face falters, her brows knitted in confusion.

Smirking inwardly, he glances away and resumes walking. “Suit yourself if you want to linger here.”

A moment later, as he is halfway to the entrance of the alley, the sound of dirt crunching reaches his ears before it develops into distinct hasty footsteps.

A satisfied smirk tugs at the corners of his lips.

Well, at least, they’re making some progress.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, thank you for taking the time to read this. I hope you find it entertaining. :D


End file.
